What to watch for at Pope Francis's canonization Mass

Pope Francis will be the third pope to visit the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception when he celebrates a canonization Mass for Franciscan missionary Junípero Serra on Wednesday. Here are some things to watch for. Complete Pope Francis coverage here.

Serra was a Franciscan missionary from Spain who founded nine missions in California and helped spread Catholicism in the American West in the late 1700s.

The choice is controversial. Serra’s official church biography acknowledges that while he fought for his Native American converts, he also viewed them paternalistically and practiced physical punishment. Canonization puts Serra on the church’s list of saints; according to church doctrine, only God can actually make him a saint.

The stained-glass window, shown below, is located in the Upper Sacristy where the pope will vest.

Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception

BLESSED SACRAMENT CHAPEL

UPPER SACRISTY

THE GREAT DOME

NORTH

ENTRANCE

The National Shrine’s decades-long construction was finished in 1959. The church is one of the world’s 10 largest and probably one of the most distinctive- looking, a combi- nation of Romanesque and Byzantine archi- tecture. John Paul II was the first pope to visit, in 1979; Pope Benedict XVI visited in 2008.

When the pontiff arrives

Upon his arrival, Pope Francis will circulate among the crowd before entering. About 2,300 seminarians and novices will be seated inside the upper church. Francis will then go to the Blessed Sacrament Chapel and Upper Sacristy.

Blessed Sacrament Chapel

In every church Pope Francis visits, he makes a point of praying in front of the Blessed Sacrament. Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI also prayed at this chapel during their visits to the Basilica.

Upper Sacristy

Pope Francis will vest (dress) in the Upper Sacristy to prepare for Mass. Sacred items and vestments are stored here beneath an elaborate ceiling fresco depicting Jesus and his apostles.

Celebrating the Mass

Mass is a worship service that culminates in the celebration of Holy Communion.

Communion, also called the Eucharist, remembers Jesus’s Last Supper. Catholics receive the consecrated bread and wine as communion with the body and blood of Jesus Christ. During this Mass, Pope Francis will canonize a Spanish missionary, declaring that he should be venerated by the whole church.

The pope will celebrate Mass at approximately 4:15 p.m. on a stage built at the East Portico, which faces the grounds where guests will be seated and standing.

EAST PORTICO

ALTAR

PULPIT

Twenty-five thousand tickets were issued — 15,000 for seats and 10,000 for standing.

Symbols of the Eucharist

on the altar

5

6

1

2

7

4

3

1. The chalice that holds wine is one

of the most important sacred vessels.

2. Ciboria contain the bread, known

as the host, that will be distributed

at Holy Communion.

3. A paten contains the large host.

4. A square piece of linen called a corporal serves as a place mat.

5. A pall, usually a card covered in linen, protects the wine.

6. The purifactor is a linen napkin used for wiping excess wine from the chalice.

7. The pope will swing a metal thurible (or censer) containing incense, a symbol of prayers rising to heaven.

Liturgical garb

The pope will arrive wearing his regular

attire.

Popes have worn white since the

1500s, when Pope Pius V was elected and

continued to wear his white Dominican habit.

Zucchetto: The pope, cardinals and bishops wear skullcaps.

Sash

Simar: Looks like a regular cassock (full- length garment) with sash and a short shoulder cape.

Pectoral cross: A friend gave Pope Francis this sterling silver cross when he became bishop of Buenos Aires.

Fisherman’s Ring

: Indicates

the wearer is a successor

to Saint Peter, a fisherman.

Francis chose a design

rejected by Pope Paul VI

that includes keys that symbolize the pope’s

authority. Traditionally the ring is made of solid

gold, but Francis’s is gold-plated sterling silver.

Francis will change into vestments to celebrate Mass. Among them:

The pastoral staff always has a knob and a cross or crucifix mounted on it.

Mitre: Worn by bishops (the pope is the bishop of Rome) during some parts of Mass.

Pallium: A wool band embroidered with six red crosses.

Alb: Tunic under the chasuble worn by the clergy during Mass.

Chasuble: Color of the outermost layer varies according to the time in the liturgical calendar and the occasion.

Cardinals are senior officials who have been elevated to their positions by a pope.

Roman purple

Bishops and archbishops oversee collections of local parishes called diocese and archdiocese. Nearly all cardinals are former bishops.

Black

Priests and seminarians.

Four masters of ceremonies, all monsignors, will be wearing fuschia cassocks and white surplices. They will be at the altar with the pope.

Two deacons who assist the pope will wear square tunics called dalmatics.

Other deacons and priests who help distribute Communion will wear long white tunics called albs with stoles across their chests.

Who was Junípero Serra?

Serra was a Franciscan missionary from Spain who founded nine missions in California and helped spread Catholicism in the American West in the late 1700s.

The choice is controversial. Serra’s official church biography acknowledges that while he fought for his Native American converts, he also viewed them paternalistically and practiced physical punishment. Canonization puts Serra on the church’s list of saints; according to church doctrine, only God can actually make him a saint.

The stained-glass window, shown below, is located in the Upper Sacristy where the pope will vest.

National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception

The National Shrine’s decades-long construction was finished in 1959. The church is one of the world’s 10 largest and probably one of the most distinctive- looking, a combination of Romanesque and Byzantine architecture. John Paul II was the first pope to visit, in 1979; Pope Benedict XVI visited in 2008.

THE KNIGHTS’ TOWER

BLESSED SACRAMENT CHAPEL

CARILLON

THE GREAT DOME

ENTRANCE

STAGE

UPPER SACRISTY

Stained-glass windows depict U.S. Catholic pioneers, including Junípero Serra (on the north wall).

Upon his arrival, Pope Francis will circulate among the crowd before entering. About 2,300 seminarians and novices will be seated inside the upper church.

Blessed Sacrament Chapel

In every church Pope Francis visits, he makes a point of praying in front of the Blessed Sacrament. Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI also prayed at this chapel during their visits to the Basilica.

Upper Sacristy

Pope Francis will vest (dress) in the Upper Sacristy to prepare for Mass. Sacred items and vestments are stored here beneath an elaborate ceiling fresco depicting Jesus and his apostles.

Celebrating the Mass

Mass is a worship service that culminates in the celebration of Holy Communion.

Communion, also called the Eucharist, remembers Jesus’s Last Supper. Catholics receive the consecrated bread and wine as communion with the body and blood of Jesus Christ. During this Mass, Pope Francis will canonize a Spanish missionary, declaring that he should be venerated by the whole church.

The pope will celebrate Mass at approximately 4:15 p.m. on a stage built at the East Portico, which faces the grounds where guests will be seated and standing.

Twenty-five thousand tickets were issued — 15,000 for seats and 10,000 for standing.

EAST PORTICO

ALTAR

PULPIT

Symbols of the Eucharist on the altar

A paten contains the large host.

The pope will swing a metal thurible (or censer) containing incense, a symbol of prayers rising to heaven.

A pall, usually a card covered in linen, protects the wine.

The purifactor

is a linen napkin used for wiping excess wine

from the chalice.

A square piece of linen called a corporal serves as a place mat.

The chalice that holds wine is one of the most important sacred vessels.

Ciboria contain the bread, known as the host, that will be distributed at Holy Communion.

Liturgical garb

Francis will change into vestments to celebrate Mass. Among them:

The pastoral staff always has a knob and a cross or crucifix mounted on it.

Mitre

: Worn by bishops

(the pope is the bishop of Rome) during some parts of Mass.

Pallium

: A wool band

embroidered with six red crosses.

Alb

: Tunic worn

by clergy during Mass.

Shoes

: Francis wears his

Chasuble

: Color of the outermost layer

varies according to the time in the liturgical

longtime favorite black shoes,

calendar and the occasion. It can be white,

a marked contrast to Benedict

gold, red, green, purple or pink.

XVI’s distinctive red ones.

: The pope, cardinals

Zucchetto

The pope will arrive wearing his

and bishops wear skullcaps

regular attire.

Popes have worn white

called zucchetto, which is Italian

since the 1500s, when Pope Pius V was elected and continued to wear his white Dominican habit.

for “little gourd.” A 400-year-old

tradition allows a person to

exchange a white zucchetto

with the pope — during private

meetings only.

Simar

: Looks like a

regular cassock (full-

Ring

length garment) with

sash and a short

shoulder cape.

Pectoral cross:

A friend gave Pope Francis this sterling silver cross when he became bishop of Buenos Aires.

Sash

Fisherman’s Ring

: Indicates the wearer is a successor to Saint Peter,

a fisherman. Francis chose a design rejected by Pope Paul VI that

includes keys that symbolize the pope’s authority. Traditionally the

ring is made of solid gold, but Francis’s is gold-plated sterling silver.

To figure out who’s who, look for these colors and clothing

worn by church officials and Mass participants:

Scarlet

Cardinals are senior officials who have been elevated to their positions by

a pope.

Black

Priests and seminarians.

Roman purple

Bishops and archbishops oversee collections of local parishes called diocese and archdiocese. Nearly all cardinals are former bishops.

Four masters of ceremonies, all monsignors, will be wearing fuschia cassocks and white surplices. They will be at the altar with the pope.

Two deacons who assist the pope will wear square tunics called dalmatics.

Other deacons and priests who help distribute Communion will wear long white tunics called albs with stoles across their chests.

Who was Junípero Serra?

Serra was a Franciscan missionary from Spain who founded nine missions in California and helped spread Catholicism in the American West in the late 1700s.

The choice is controversial. Serra’s official church biography acknowledges that while he fought for his Native American converts, he also viewed them paternalistically and practiced physical punishment. Canonization puts Serra on the church’s list of saints; according to church doctrine, only God can actually make him a saint.

The stained-glass window, shown below, is located in the Upper Sacristy where the pope will vest.

The National Shrine’s decades-long construction was finished in 1959. The church is one of the world’s 10 largest and probably one of the most distinctive-looking, a combination of Romanesque and Byzantine architecture. John Paul II was the first pope to visit, in 1979; Pope Benedict XVI visited in 2008.

THE KNIGHTS’ TOWER

CARILLON

THE GREAT DOME

BLESSED SACRAMENT CHAPEL

Upon his arrival, Pope Francis will circulate among the crowd before entering. About 2,300 seminarians and novices will be seated inside the upper church.

NORTH

ENTRANCE

UPPER SACRISTY

STAGE

Stained-glass

windows depict U.S.

Catholic pioneers,

including Junípero Serra

EAST PORTICO

(on the north wall).

Blessed Sacrament Chapel

Upper Sacristy

Pope Francis will vest (dress) in the Upper Sacristy to prepare for Mass. Sacred items and vestments are stored here beneath an elaborate ceiling fresco depicting Jesus and his apostles.

In every church Pope Francis visits, he makes a point of praying in front of the Blessed Sacrament, consecrated bread stored in a tabernacle.

Celebrating the Mass

Symbols of the Eucharist

EAST PORTICO

Mass is a worship service that culminates in the celebration of Holy Communion.

5

6

Communion, also called the Eucharist, remembers Jesus’s Last Supper. Catholics receive the consecrated bread and wine as communion with the body and blood of Jesus Christ. During this Mass, Pope Francis will canonize a Spanish missionary, declaring that he should be venerated by the whole church.

The pope will celebrate Mass at approximately 4:15 p.m. on a stage built at the East Portico, which faces the grounds where guests will be seated and standing.

Twenty-five thousand tickets were issued — 15,000 for seats and 10,000 for standing.

1

2

7

4

3

1

. The chalice that holds wine is one

of the most important sacred vessels.

2

. Ciboria contain the bread, known

as the host, that will be distributed

at Holy Communion.

3

. A paten contains the large host.

4

. A square piece of linen called a

corporal serves as a place mat.

5

. A pall, usually a card covered

in linen, protects the wine.

6

. The purifactor is a linen

napkin used for wiping excess

wine from the chalice.

7

. The pope will swing a metal

ALTAR

thurible (or censer) containing

PULPIT

incense, a symbol of prayers

rising to heaven.

always has a knob

pastoral staff

The

and a cross or crucifix mounted on it.

Liturgical garb

Francis will change into vestments to celebrate Mass. Among them:

The pope will arrive

wearing his regular

: The pope, cardinals

Zucchetto

attire.

Popes have worn

and bishops wear skullcaps

white since the 1500s,

called zucchetto, which is Italian

when Pope Pius V was

Mitre

: Worn by bishops

for “little gourd.” A 400-year-old

elected and continued

(the pope is the bishop of Rome) during some parts of Mass.

tradition allows a person to

to wear his white

exchange a white zucchetto

Dominican habit.

with the pope — during private

Pallium

: A wool band

meetings only.

embroidered with six red crosses.

Simar

: Looks like a

Ring

regular cassock (full-

length garment) with

sash and a short

shoulder cape.

Pectoral cross:

A friend gave Pope Francis this sterling silver cross when he became bishop of Buenos Aires.

Alb

: Tunic

worn by clergy during Mass.

Sash

Fisherman’s Ring

Chasuble

Shoes

: Indicates the wearer is a successor to Saint Peter,

: Color of the outermost layer

: Francis wears his

a fisherman. Francis chose a design rejected by Pope Paul VI that

varies according to the time in the

longtime favorite black shoes,

includes keys that symbolize the pope’s authority. Traditionally the

liturgical calendar and the occasion. It can

a marked contrast to Benedict

ring is made of solid gold, but Francis’s is gold-plated sterling silver.

be white, gold, red, green, purple or pink.

XVI’s distinctive red ones.

To figure out who’s who, look for these colors and clothing worn by church officials and Mass participants:

Scarlet

Roman purple

Black

Four masters of ceremonies, all monsignors, will be wearing fuschia cassocks and white surplices. They will be at the altar with the pope.

Two deacons who assist the pope will wear square tunics called dalmatics.

Other deacons and priests who help distribute Communion will wear long white tunics called albs with stoles across their chests.

Priests and seminarians.

Cardinals are senior officials who have been elevated to their positions by

a pope.

Bishops and archbishops oversee collections of local parishes called diocese and archdiocese. Nearly all cardinals are former bishops.

SOURCE: Geraldine M. Rohling, archivist and curator at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception; Catholic University; U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops; Archdiocese of Washington.